Replacement Maid
by mystie21-12
Summary: <html><head></head>Mei-Rin fell ill so the Mansion's defense decreased. Sebastian was ordered to recruit another maid to replace her. But there's something strange with this girl. Will the Phantomhive residents find out her secret? A bit of romance between the servants.</html>
1. His Butler, Replacing

One night, Bard and Finni was a bit depressed since Mei-Rin felt weak. She laid frail on her bed with a blanket over her body and a cloth placed on her forehead. Not much was done tidy around the house, actually even if Mei-Rin wasn't sick more or less. Still, the Manor became a bit vulnerable since they lost arm support, Ciel also noticed this. He thought of a plan to restore the manor's security. Before he could think anymore, Sebastian walked into Ciel's study with a tray full of treats.

"Master, I have brought you a slice of Madeira cake, a cherry cake that originated from the Madeira Islands together with—

"Sebastian, do you not notice the situation we have here? Without one of our servants, the defense of this mansion has diminished." Ciel explained seriously.

"Quite, the house felt a bit calmer seeing as she isn't here to make a mess when she supposed to clean it" he said as he placed the tray on the Master's desk.

"Hmm… I thought of something. Sebastian I want you to recruit a new maid for the time being tomorrow… better yet tonight" Ciel ordered.

"Right away my lord"

"And make sure this maid is worthy enough to be a Phantomhive servant"

"Of course Master" Sebastian disappeared out of the room.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, somewhere in the outskirts of London, two men have been yelling and shouting at people for attention. They were in front of a large cage with red curtains blocking the being within.<p>

"Step right up Ladies and Gentlemen. I show you a being like no other. I introduce you Freakline! Half feline and half human!"

With a pull of a rope, the curtains revealed a human like being with cat like fur that covered all over her body. Her fur was white with black streaks and cat ears pointed from the top of her head. She rapidly shook the side of the cage where the sight of staring people was viewed. She clawed between the bars, looking like she wanted to scratch the faces off of their heads. The catlike girl growled like a jaguar attacking its prey. The people gasped in amazement. They threw money at the men and the children threw stones at the beast.

"Look at that freak!" someone pointed.

"Now that is really strange" a woman remarked.

The beast became furious and shook the cage relentlessly. The cage started to creak which frighten the crowd. One of the men released a black hound to terrify the girl. The girl growled in fear and backed away from the barking dark canine. The crowd laughed at her terror. They pointed fingers at her and called her names such as "Freak!" or "Scaredy-Cat!" or "Beast!". She could do nothing but sit in a corner as people laughed at her.

After a few hours, the streets were empty and silent. A spiky collar was strapped on the girl's neck that made the fur streamed into the collar as if the collar was absorbing it. Her tail disappeared, her ears moved to the side of her head and the fur left only her true hair which is short, even and thick with bangs that reached her eyebrows. The only thing that made her resemble a cat was the cute cat like mouth of hers. She wore nothing but a white strapless mini dress. The two greedy men counted the money they earned on a crate while the girl languished at her own misery. The men became annoyed by her endless moaning meows that kept ringing in their ears.

"Stop it you freak!" one of the men slashed a silver plate across the bars.

"Think of how much we would earn with this freak Burton! We will soon be living in a palace if we set her as entertainment for those rich nobles!" the other man said.

"Yes, we will soon be living in a Mansion made of polished marble and hire servants who would do everything we ordered" the man added.

The girl in the cage growled louder as she pulled out a claw at the man. "You are the freaks you greedy mice!" she yelled.

"Shut up or else I'll get Bruno out here again" he threatened.

"Try me!" She broke out off the cage and scratched the man with her sharp claws. The man's face was ripped off and blood was dipped on the girl's claws. The man at the table brought back the black dog.

"I warn you. If you don't stop, Bruno will rip you apart" he threatened in fear. The girl glared with deadly piercing red eyes. She ran in great speed and ripped both the skin of the dog and the man. The dog yelped in pain as the man screamed. She shred them into pieces, leaving a pool of blood under the shredded corpse. Her claws were dripping with blood while her eyes dripped tears.

Out of nowhere, a tall dark man appeared behind her. "That was quite a show my lady" he said. She hissed and jumped backward with her claws prepared to scratch him. "Don't worry my lady. I don't have an intention of hurting you in any way. I'm here to offer a job for you"

"Me? A job?"

"The job I'm offering you is to be the new Phantomhive provisional maid. You see our previous one was ill and so were searching for a temporary replacement"

The girl retracted her claws and thought about it. She will finally be free from the life of being called a freak. No more public displays, no more name calling, no more cages to be locked in. Sadly it was only temporary but she needed to be free for once. "I accept"

The man smiled widely "Very well but before returning to the mansion, you might as well wear this" he held out a maid uniform for her.

The girl took the uniform and wore it in a dark corner. She stepped out of the darkness and showed her self.

"I believe that you don't have a name yet don't you?"the man said. The girl didn't answer. "Well, how about Catherine" he suggested. The girl nodded. The man smiled widely again "Come, I shall take you to the mansion"

The girl followed him into the streets of London.


	2. His Butler, Introducing

Sebastian and Catherine arrive at the mansion's door step. Catherine was a bit nervous at the time. "What is the master like?" she asked.

"He is very busy. You may not want to bother him at work. So you might want to think of a good first impression" Sebastian said.

Catherine felt her heart pound. She was very anxious of her master's opinion on her. Sebastian opened the door and gestured at her "Lady's first" he smirked. Catherine walked inside the manor and was dumbfounded at the size of it. Of course she was surprised since she lived in the streets all her life. "Come, the Master is waiting" Sebastian walked up stairs with Catherine following him. They walked through the halls.

"It's seems quiet" Catherine said.

"By the way, I will introduce you to the servants in the morning" Sebastian said.

"Of course"

Sebastian opened the door for Catherine and walked inside. Ciel was continuing writing his papers. Catherine was surprised to see that her master is just a young boy. "_So this is the Earl Phantomhive_" she thought. Ciel dropped his quill on his desk and glared at the girl.

"What's your name?" Ciel asked her.

"I-I'm Ca-Catherine my lord!" Catherine answered with a trembling voice. She bowed in front of him.

The master seemed indifferent. "Hmm… Fine then, you will start work tomorrow. Sebastian prepare the bath for me and take her to her room" Ciel ordered.

"Yes young master" Sebastian leaned near Catherine ear. "Wait outside" he whispered. Catherine nodded and left the room.

"Sebastian, are you sure about this girl?" he crossed his legs and clenched his hands together.

"Yes young master"

Ciel closed his eyes and smirked "What was that collar around her neck by the way?"

"I haven't investigated it. Although it does puzzle me as well"

"Then found out what it is. If I found something out of hand she will have to leave"

"Yes my lord" Sebastian bowed and left the room. Catherine waited with her back against the wall. "Follow me, I will show you to your quarters" Catherine nodded and followed Sebastian. He led her to Mei-Rin's quarters. "This is the maid's quarters. This is where you'll be sleeping for now" Sebastian said. He closed and left the room.

Catherine's eyes wandered around. She saw a large wooden closet at the corner. When she opened the closet, she saw sets of guns and rifles displayed and attached to the sides. Catherine was shocked to find weapons, especially in a maid's quarters. She quickly closed the closet with her back against it.

"_Is this what Phantomhive servants are? Gunslingers?" _she thought in fright. She realized the meaning of being a Phantomhive servant is: "A killer"

Or is she just exaggerating? Anyhow, she is still a maid and a maid's job is to clean and tidy up homes. This will only be temporary anyway but still, she doesn't want to live in the cold, dark streets anymore, ravaging through garbage and sleeping in alleys is no life for a girl like her. She breathe deeply to calm herself and took off her collar. The fur came running down her skin as whiskers and a tail popped out. She threw off her maid uniform in a nearby chair and jumped right into her bed. She laid on the bed in a catlike spiral sleeping position. It felt cozy and warm on her bed instead of being cold and sore in the streets or a cage.

"_I will do my best to be a Phantomhive maid, I will do whatever it takes to stay_" she thought with determination. She fell asleep.

Meanwhile in Ciel's bathroom…

"Master, I have a feeling that the girl meddled in Mei-Rin's belongings" Sebastian said.

"Good. She now knows what it takes to be a Phantomhive servant. Elizabeth is going to visit tomorrow"

"Yes, I will arrange the preparations"

"Hmph, knowing Elizabeth, she wouldn't like to see such a collar on a girl's neck, I guarantee it. Still, I want that collar off her as soon as possible"

**The next day…**

"Why did Sebastian call us here?" Finni asked.

"He said something about introducing the new maid" Bard explained.

"What does she look like?" Says Oscar.

"How should I know? He just found her last night!" Bard replied. Sebastian opened the door of the servant's quarters.

"Good morning everyone. As you know, Mei-Rin isn't felling well so master ordered me to recruit a new maid" Sebastian explained.

"He-hello" Catherine said as she leaned through the crack on the door. She showed a nervous face and waved at them. Sebastian was annoyed so he dragged her inside.

"If you're willing to introduce yourself, at least show poise" Sebastian yelled. Catherine trembled.

"What's your name?" Finni asked.

"I-I'm Catherine. Nice to meet you"

"You look much like a cat, which is cute. Snake, I think we found a girl with an animal complexion like you" Bard patted Snake's back. Snake posture jolts straight every time he was startled.

"So your name is Snake… suits you. I like your skin" Catherine said with a sweet tone. Snake blushed.

"Really, thanks" Says Bronte. Snake scratched the back of his head.

Sebastian clapped his hands. "Now, Lady Elizabeth is arriving today. You all know your jobs so get to work" Bard, Finni and Snake walked out of their places.

"See ya Cat!" Finni grinned and left with the others.

"_I can't believe that boy called me that!_" Catherine rolled her hands into a fist. Sebastian leaned into her ear. "Please take care of the plants in the greenhouse" he whispered. Catherine nodded and walked outside.

Meanwhile… Sebastian appeared behind Snake who was on the way to the greenhouse. Snake turned around.

"Snake, I have a request from the master… He wants to know about Catherine's collar's purpose so I want you to somehow obtain this collar" he ordered. Snake nodded. "Very well, I will hear the information once you have it"

* * *

><p><strong>Elizabeth's arriving at the next chapter. There's also a bit of romance as well. Keep in mind that I update weekly.<strong>


	3. His Butler, Falling

On her way to the green house, Catherine had a lot in her mind. She wants to please everyone in the mansion so she could stay but she hadn't done any work involving what a maid would do. She walked through the halls with a mind full of thought.

**BOOM!**

Catherine was startled by the loud explosion that came from the kitchen. She ran to see what happened. She saw Bard lying down on the floor still conscious but his skin was baked and his hair was flared up too. The stove was blown, most of the kitchen utensils were blown off their places and ash and rubble covered the floor.

"What did you just do!" Catherine asked with a panicky tone.

"Oh it's you Cat… I used a few dynamite to speed up cooking" He explained. He sounds pretty dumb to Catherine.

"Are you mad? You could've killed someone!" Catherine looked at his brown burnt skin. She grabbed a wash cloth and drenched it with water. She knelt close to Bard and gently wiped his cheek. "Please don't try anything like that again. You might get hurt" Catherine said with a gentler voice. Bard looked at her concerned blue eyes and blushed. He felt Catherine's soft strokes that exchange places around his face. Bard clutched the wash cloth once he saw Sebastian step in.

"Catherine, I told you to take care of the plants in the greenhouse" Sebastian reminded. Catherine stood up from her place.

"I'm sorry! I'll go now" Catherine sprinted pass Sebastian.

Sebastian looked at Bard's glaring face. "Hmph, what a girl to show sympathy around mere servants" he commented.

Bard threw the cloth at Sebastian but he managed to catch it. "Whip that smirk off your face" Bard said teasingly.

"Master wants to know the whereabouts of her collar so please try and find out about it" Bard nodded.

Meanwhile, Catherine ran to the wide front garden. She saw the boy who started to call her Cat before. Catherine was still annoyed of what he called her earlier but she couldn't help but ask him where the greenhouse. She bent near crouching Finni who was trimming the bushes. She tapped him gently on the shoulder which caused Finni to turn around.

"Umm… Could you show me where the greenhouse is?" She asked sweetly. Finni stared at Catherine's adorable and innocent face.

"Over there" Finni pointed at the glass greenhouse at the east.

Catherine smiled. "Thanks" she messed Finni's hair and continued walking to the greenhouse. Finni touched his hair as his face turned pink. Out of nowhere, Sebastian appeared in front of him.

"Se-Sebastian!" Finni backed away with his face still blushing.

"Have you notice that spiky collar on her neck? Master wants the collar off her. Please do your best to remove it" Finni nodded.

Back at the greenhouse, Catherine was amazed at the number of flowers and plants that were displayed. It was such a beautiful and enchanting sight. She snapped out of her trance and grabbed the watering can and filled it with water. Catherine was, of course not very fond of water. She usually grooms herself like what other cats do but taking a bath? She maybe half human but she is still half a cat. She carefully watered every plant in the room. Soon she felt a presence behind her so she turned around only to find Snake standing near the entrance. Catherine was relieved.

"Oh, it's just you Snake, I thought you were someone else" She sighed. "What are you doing here by the way?"

"I usually come here for some free time" Says Wilde.

"Oh" Catherine was half way through watering the plants while Snake was sneaking around her. Catherine didn't like this awkward silence around them so she asked "Did people make fun of you Snake?"

Snake interested to answer Wilde says "Yeah, I used to live in a Circus until Earl Phantomhive took me in"

"Oh really? I didn't know he had the heart to do that. Here I am thinking of my master of being cold and heartless-"

"I didn't ask to be here anyway, I'm here to find my friends from the Circus. And, now that I'm around nobles a lot, people started to talk about my skin" Says Goethe.

"I didn't have a family at all unlike you. I didn't have friends or a place to call home because of my appearance. Instead, they criticize me and display me as public entertainment. So I was made fun of a lot" Catherine's eyes watered.

Snake was a bit astonished to how similar their lives were. He had his arm extended to her neck; letting Wordsworth sneak to her collar "I didn't know—

"But still, I want them to realize that I want to be part of this mansion, even if they use me as defense or a house maid. I want to think of the people in this mansion as family instead of masters and associates" Soon Catherine was finished watering the plants and Wordsworth was almost to chew the collar off her.

Catherine turned around which startled Snake to lower his hand with Wordsworth slithering back. Catherine smiled "Maybe its fate that we get to meet each other. I never thought I would find someone like you" She said with hopeful eyes. Snake started to blush. Catherine held Snake's hands and said "Now, from now on, we would be proud about our appearances no matter what people say about us"

Catherine walked away near the greenhouse entrance, leaving Snake's face turning pink. Catherine looked back at Snake with a smiling face "You know Snake, I think we will make good friends" she said as she left the greenhouse.

Snake fell to his knees with his face all red. "_What's wrong with me? Why's my heart beating so fast?_" He thought as he clenched his chest. "_I never felt like this since I met Dagger. Seriously what's wrong with me?_"

When Catherine was at the front garden, she didn't saw the boy whom she talked to before "That's strange, where did he go?" she said to herself. Nevertheless she walked inside the mansion through the front entrance. "Now where are those t—WHAT THE HECK?" Once she caught sight of the interior design, she was shocked that it was all replaced by pink girly ribbons, rabbit and cat designs, heart balloons and childish animal stuff toys.

"Catherine!" Catherine saw Bard and Finni running to her with an absurd feminine get up.

"Wha-what the heck happened to you two?" she asked.

"Ask her!" They both pointed at the door that leads to the dining room. She nervously walked inside.

"Kyahh! You look so adorable!" A girl squealed as she pampered old Tanaka with a feminine outfit.

"EH?"

* * *

><p><strong>Uh-oh! Looks like Catherine in for some trouble. See what's going to happen next week!<strong>


End file.
